Detection of Babesia canis vogeli, Babesia gibsoni and Ehrlichia canis by multiplex PCR in naturally infected dogs in South India

Abstract

tick borne haemoparasites and haemorickettsiales pose a major health risk to animals worldwide. the present study reports the development and validation of multiplex PCr to simultaneously detect the most prevalent tick borne pathogens infecting dogs in kerala, South India. the assay targeting the small subunit ribosomal rNa genes of the organisms could amplify well demarcated amplicons of B. canis vogeli, B. gibsoni and E. canis. In the study population, which included both healthy dogs as well as those with clinical symptoms suggestive of the three infections under study, 46.6% animals were infected with one of the three pathogens, amongst which the occurrence of B. gibsoni was significantly the highest. Natural co-infections were also detected in nine dogs, which suggests the suitability of the assay to assist in the selection of pathogen specific treatment protocols.

Genetic Diversity of Canine Babesia Species Prevalent in Pet Dogs of Punjab, Pakistan

“…It is transmitted by a tick vector, which is capable of infecting a wide variety of hosts. Even a single infected tick can be sufficient to transmit the disease [16]. The results of the present study were in accordance with previous studies [16,17,18].…”

Molecular tools-advances, opportunities and prospects for the control of parasites of veterinary importance

“…Multiplex PCR is also applied for the simultaneous detection of natural infection of theileriosis, babesiosis and trypanosomosis in cattle (Sharma et al 2014 ; Kundave et al 2018 ). In canines, detection of Babesia canis vogeli, Babesia gibsoni and Ehrlichia canis could be carried out by multiplex PCR (Jain et al 2018 ). Newer techniques such as micro-arrays or molecular beacon’s use in parasites of veterinary importance would be a very attractive approach.…”

Diagnosis and treatment of canine babesiosis in dogs

“…Canine babesiosis and ehrlichiosis are amongst the most prevailing vector borne haemo-parasites/rickettsiae of dogs in India. 1 Canine babesiosis is a clinically significant and geographically widespread hemoprotozoan disease of domesticated dogs and wild canids 2 caused by various species of the protozoa of genus Babesia. It is diagnostically important to determine the species that causes canine babesiosis, since the virulence, prognosis, and response to antibabesial drugs may be different for each organism.…”